FROM THE EDITOR: Patricia McClunie-Trust
Researching in a virtual world

KIA ORA KOUTOU. Welcome to the 2025 edition of Kaitiaki Nursing Research. As this edition marks our first fully online production, I am reminded that much of our nursing research is now undertaken virtually and in collaboration with other researchers, enabled by digital tools that allow us to work across institutional and international boundaries (McClunie-Trust et al., 2022).

Scholarly information is abundant, in both quantity and quality, available through a wide range of subscribed and open-source digital repositories. Gusenbauer (2021) reports that more research has been published so far this century than in the preceding 100 years. This abundance of information means that researchers need to develop sophisticated methods for searching databases and digital repositories, and to engage librarians as information experts in framing searches and evaluating what they find (Gusenbauer, 2021). Online tools for storing research data and integrating multiple researchers into research projects, such as Microsoft Teams, the Open Science Framework (2025), and Covidence (2023), have increased collaboration potential, enabling researchers to work together virtually in real time (McClunie-Trust et al., 2022).

Facilitating collaboration

Research collaborations are an effective way to develop knowledge, improve patient outcomes, and foster innovation. Collaborations can leverage the skills and other capabilities of like-minded researchers (McClunie-Trust et al., 2022), expand researchers’ networks, and offer opportunities to share expertise and resources. Collaborations often lead to greater productivity on more complex research projects (Abramo et al., 2017). Collaborations among nurse academics, nurse clinicians and health-care organisations promote the translation of research into practice, ultimately improving health-care delivery and patient safety. They lay the groundwork for innovative solutions in response to the cultural and clinical requirements of nursing education, practice and research in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Collaborations with communities and researcher colleagues that incorporate a Māori worldview put cultural values and identity to the fore in research in a way that expands knowledge and understanding (Durie, 2001). Blending Māori values and Western science offers a transformative approach for nurse researchers to address equity issues in Māori health (Rolleston et al., 2022). Positioning research within te ao Māori enables Māori researchers to take an approach informed by Te Ara Tika — a framework for Māori research ethics which includes the four principles of “whakapapa (relationships), tika (research design), manākitanga (cultural responsibility), and mana (justice/equity), which draw from mātauranga Māori and tikanga Māori” (Woods et al., 2025, p. 4).

Māori men in nursing education

In this year’s edition, the researched viewpoint by Hughes et al. presents reflections on the experiences of two Māori male nurses working in nursing education. Seamus Hughes and John Hiakita note that the Nursing Council of New Zealand’s Te Tiriti o Waitangi policy (NCNZ, 2023) and guidelines for cultural safety in nursing education and practice (NCNZ, 2011) mandate obligations for nurses to foster cultural safety in order to address health inequities. The challenge for nurses is to create an authentic, embodied nursing practice grounded in cultural safety and Māori values. Hughes and Hiakita explain how their experience as Māori men and nurse educators underpins a powerful pedagogy, weaving together a unique blend of cultural perspective, professional experience and personal identity to enrich the cultural and learning environment in nursing education.

Perceptions of rongoā

Bowlin and Song’s research used a qualitative survey method and thematic analysis to explore third-year bachelor of nursing students’ perceptions of rongoā Māori. A traditional Māori healing system, rongoā encompasses Māori knowledge and wisdom, including the interconnectedness of land, plants, family, spirituality, and physical well-being (Mark et al., 2017). The standards of competence for registered nurses (NCNZ, 2025) require all nurses to support Māori health equity, advocate for patient preferences, and uphold kawa whakaruruhau (cultural safety). The findings of this study suggest that while bachelor of nursing students have positive attitudes toward rongoā Māori, cultural and systemic barriers are major factors in successfully integrating it in practice. The authors highlight the need for nursing students to learn about holistic Māori healing systems and to ensure the safe integration of rongoā knowledge into clinical care settings and nursing education programmes.

The lived experience of gout

Jack and McClunie-Trust conducted a meta-ethnography to synthesise the findings of 20 qualitative research studies that explored the lived experience of people with gout. The findings of this review suggest that the ripple effect of gout flares impacts every aspect of a person’s life, disrupting work and family life and contributing to a sense of helplessness due to the intensity of pain. Misconceptions about gout as a chronic disease often resulted in missed opportunities for effective management of symptoms for participants in the studies. Study participants also related how they negotiated their lives with gout, finding a sense of agency through effective self-management of the disease and its symptoms. Recommendations from this review suggest that educational approaches that align with patient preferences and health literacy, address treatment barriers, and incorporate relevant cultural support are most effective. These strategies support optimal disease management and foster a sense of agency in living with gout.

Screening tools for perinatal depression

The researched viewpoint by White examined screening tools for perinatal depression, which is defined as severe depressive episodes during pregnancy (antenatal) and within 12 months postpartum. While screening for perinatal depression is widely practised across the world, there are ethical issues associated with the use of screening tools, which may result in more harm than benefit, particularly in over- or under-identifying perinatal depression or degrees of emotional distress. White explores the efficacy of identified screening tools in relation to the ethical responsibilities of nurses, midwives, and other health practitioners when making decisions about health care for women in pregnancy and childbirth.

Staff perceptions of palliative care

The integrative review by Michael and Mercer examined staff perceptions and experiences of palliative care provision in aged residential care facilities. Staff working in these facilities must possess expertise in delivering care to enhance the quality of life for people with advanced palliative and end-of-life care needs. The feasibility of receiving preferred palliative care in these facilities is limited by available resources. Palliative care requires an integrated, responsive staff familiar with providing end-of-life care (Moberly et al., 2023). The findings of this review indicate that palliative and end-of-life care are essential elements of service in aged residential care facilities. However, health policy and funding need to reflect the increasing demand for these services in aged residential care and provide adequate resourcing to meet those needs.

NZNO’s nurse researchers

In the final section of this year’s edition, we have included a report from Lorraine Ritchie on NZNO’s Nursing Research Section Te Wāhanga Rangahau Tapuhi (NRS). The section is committed to upholding the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It works to honour this commitment through meeting kaupapa, the scholarships made available to NRS members, and the inclusion of researchers using indigenous kaupapa Māori research methodology at research forums. The NRS golden jubilee will be held in October 2026, celebrating 50 years since the section was inaugurated to promote nursing’s professional voice through research.

---

References

Abramo, G., D’angelo, C. A., & Di Costa, F. (2019). The collaboration behavior of top scientists. Scientometrics, 118(1), 215-232.

Covidence. (2023). Better systematic review management.

Durie, M. (2001). Mauri Ora: The Dynamics of Māori Health. Oxford University Press.

Gusenbauer, M. (2021). The age of abundant scholarly information and its synthesis – A time when ‘just google it’ is no longer enough. Research Synthesis Methodology, 12(6), 684-691.

Mark, G., Chamberlain, K., & Boulton, A. (2017). Acknowledging the Māori cultural values and beliefs embedded in rongoā Māori healing. International Journal of Indigenous Health, 12(1), 75-92.

McClunie-Trust, P., Jones, V., Winnington, R., Shannon, K., Donaldson, A. E., Macdiarmid, R., Jarden, R. J., Turner, R., Merrick, E., & Andersen, P. (2022). Doing case study research collaboratively: the benefits for researchers. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 21.

Moberley, S., Hewitt, J., Attia, J., Cole, J., Bevington, J., Oldmeadow, C., Howard, Z., & Hughes, R. (2023). Preferences and end of life care for residents of aged care facilities: a mixed methods study. BMC Palliative Care, 22(1), 124.

Nursing Council of New Zealand (NCNZ). (2011). Guidelines for cultural safety, the Treaty of Waitangi and Māori health in nursing education and practice.

Nursing Council of New Zealand (NCNZ). (2023). Te Tiriti o Waitangi Policy.

Nursing Council of New Zealand (NCNZ). (2025). Standards of competence for registered nurses. 

OSF. (2025). Open Science Framework. Centre for Open Science.

Rolleston, A., Miskelly, P., McDonald, M., Wiles, J., Poppe, K., & Doughty, R. (2022). Cultural context in New Zealand: incorporating kaupapa Māori values in clinical research and practice. Health Promotion International, 37(3), daac065.

Woods, J., Tipa, Z., Smith, M., & Lim, A. G. (2025). Exploring the Transformative Potential of Kaupapa Māori Methodology in Nursing Research in Aotearoa New Zealand. Nursing Praxis in Aotearoa New Zealand.